Heretofore there have been many different compositions proposed and used commercially for various flame retarding products and articles made from elastomeric compositions involving synthetic rubbers, natural rubbers, plastic materials and the like. These flame retardant compositions usually will char but will not support independent or continued combustion.
There are many uses for flame retardant elastomeric articles and compositions, and one use thereof may be as elastic flooring materials. Flooring that is used in confined areas where combustion is particularly objectionable, such as in submarines, in boats, and in some mining uses, etc., preferably should be non-combustible.
It also should be realized that synthetic rubber compositions, such as for use in flooring products, still must be relatively easy or conventional in their properties insofar as the handling and processing of the materials in production practices are concerned. Hence, the rubber and compounding materials used should be capable of being processed readily in rubber mixing mills, on calenders, or extruders, and the rubber compositions should have no excessive shrinkage and present little more than normal difficulties in the plant processing and vulcanization thereof.
The general object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved rubber composition flooring material that has very good flame retardant properties and wherein the rubber composition can be processed under substantially normal factory rubber processing conditions, operations and procedures.
Another object of the invention is to provide a rubber composition flooring material that is made from a hot emulsion polymer synthetic rubber, that has fire retardant materials therein and which has a fire retardant or coolant material such as hydrated alumina therein and wherein preferably the composition includes a high flash point naphthenic oil in the oil and plasticizer system of the material.
Another object of the invention is to provide a flame retardant rubber composition wherein the fire retardant materials therein have a synergistic effect in combination with each other; and where rubber flooring made therefrom has superior properties.